UT
sunstone (labradorite)basalt
State-designated locality · Free · Free; no fee or permit. The Utah Geological Survey asks collectors to sign the register at the entrance.
Checked against its source August 16, 2026
3 legal places to look for gem rough and gemstones in Utah — fees, seasons, and official sources below. The historic record adds the underground story: 84 entries.
Hours, fees, and access rules change. Verify with the operator or land agency before you go.
UT
sunstone (labradorite)basalt
State-designated locality · Free · Free; no fee or permit. The Utah Geological Survey asks collectors to sign the register at the entrance.
Checked against its source August 16, 2026
UT
topazpink topazbixbyite
Fee dig · Fee · Public tours, private tours for one to eight people, and prospector passes for collecting the rubble piles at Topaz Dome. Prices are not posted on the operator's site and vary by product, so request current rates before booking. Expect guided-tour pricing rather than a walk-in day fee.
Checked against its source August 16, 2026
Topaz Mountain Rockhound Recreation Area
UT
topazbixbyitered beryl
BLM collecting area · Free · Free; no permit or fee. Collect for personal, non-commercial use only. BLM's page for this area does not post a specific weight ceiling, so keep it to reasonable hobbyist amounts and call the Fillmore Field Office at 435-743-3100 if you intend to take a lot.
Checked against its source August 16, 2026
Mineral history, not an invitation. This mineral history comes from a federal record of historic mines, prospects, and occurrences. It is not a list of places to collect. Historic mine sites are usually on private land, under active mining claims, or unsafe to enter — and often all three. The places you can actually collect are in the legal-access directory below.
The federal record lists 84 historic entries involving gem rough and gemstones in Utah , clustered in Box Elder, Garfield, Kane counties. That geography is the honest clue about which corners of the state carry the right rocks — read it as geology, then pick a legal place to test it.
Records from the USGS Mineral Resources Data System, a legacy federal database last revised August 2022 and no longer updated.
Start with the 3 legal places listed on this page — each shows what you can find, its fees, and its season, with a link to the official source. Hours, fees, and access rules change. Verify with the operator or land agency before you go.
Treat Utah's historic mines as history, not destinations. Most sit on private land or active mining claims, and old workings are dangerous even to walk. The mineral record on this page tells you what the ground holds — the directory tells you where you are welcome to look for it.